This is from a few weeks ago, but things haven't changed much. I weigh like 2 pounds more than I did with Ariel, but I actually don't feel quite as big. Maybe I've just gotten used to being pregnant, but it seems to me like, while I'm quite uncomfortably large, that I should be sticking out just a little bit more if I really only have 3 weeks to go. Hear that? THREE WEEKS!!! WOOHOO! According to my doctor this afternoon, I'm 1.5 centimeters dilated and 75% effaced. Now, if I recall correctly, 1.5 cm can be loosely translated as "not really dilated at all," but the effaced part is good, right? I'm all packed for the hospital (except for my hair brush and camera, but I have a note in the bag reminding me to grab those!), the sheets are on the bassinet, I'm armed with newborn sized diapers and lots of tiny little onesies, so I think I'm pretty much good to go. Maybe I should run the onesies through the wash. I don't think I've washed them since I packed them away after Ariel. Hmmm...
At the moment, my washing machine is otherwise engaged, "stripping" my cloth diapers. That is correct - we are cloth diapering. Have I mentioned Ariel's rash on this blog? A few months ago, she started developing a nasty rash on her upper rear end/lower back. It itched, and she would scratch herself until she bled, poor thing! The doctor and lactation consultant both said "try switching to cloth," but I was chicken and afraid to invest the time and money when I didn't know if it would help. Finally, on the first weekend of July, Dan and I decided to take the plunge and buy a starter kit of gDiapers. Within 24 hours, the rash was no longer red, and she wasn't scratching! Within a few days, her back was smooth. The flushable inserts are pretty spendy, but we've been using cloth prefolds at home and only using the flushables if we take her out, which actually makes this a little cheaper than disposables. And, you have to admit, they're pretty darn cute!
So, now we get to the stripping part. Cloth diapering has changed, for those of you who aren't young cloth diapering moms and don't know this. We don't boil or bleach or any of those things. Most people just wash them once or twice at the most in a regular washing machine, because washing machines are a lot better now, and bleach is a pretty nasty chemical to put against your kid's skin, plus it breaks down the fibers really fast and reduces absorbency. HOWEVER, because detergents today are so full of nasty additives that are made to leave residues (like fabric softeners and optical brighteners, which coat fabric fibers), they can be a huge problem for cloth diapers, causing odors and also reducing absorbency. My diapers started smelling like cat pee in no time, and washing them didn't do too much good. To fix this, you're supposed to "strip" them - wash them in hot water with no detergent until you no longer see suds when the washer agitates. I've been washing mine in 2 batches. The first took 6 cycles, and it looks like this second batch may end up taking more like 7 or 8. At least my washing machine is an Energy Star! I definitely don't want to do this again, though, so I've switched to a detergent that all the cloth diapering moms seem to rave about, Charlie's Soap. We'll see how things go now...
So that's pretty much up with me right now - stripping my diapers and being pregnant. Between the back pain issues and a little girl who is always up by 8am, I'm living on Tylenol and coffee. Probably not super-healthy, but my doctor's not concerned, and I gotta do what I gotta do! Okay, gotta go turn the washer back on - it just finished cycle No. 5.
No comments:
Post a Comment